Apparatus for impregnating logs.



W. G. BORN. APPARATUS FOR IMPREGIIA'I'HTG LOGS. APPLIUATION FILED00T.11, 19Q9. RENBWED DEO. 3, 1910.

Patented Nov. 5, 1912.

Q www@ lUNlTE SARS PATENT OFFICE.

WILLIAM: G. BORN, OIE CHICAGO, ILLNOIS, AsSGNOR, BY MESNE ASSIGNMENTS,TO WOOD PROCESS COMPANY, OF NEW-YORK, N. Y., A CORPORATION OF NEW YORK.'

APPARATUS FOR :IMPREGNATNG LOGS.

Application tiled October 11, 1909, Serial No. 521,999.

Specification of Letters Yatent.

PatentedNov. 5,1912.

Renewed December 3, 1910. Serial No. 595,539.

To all 'whom it may concern:

Be it known that l, Tinian G. BORN, a subject of the Emperor of Germany,and a resident olf Chicago, county of Cook, State ot' Illinois, haveinvented vcertain new and useful Improvements in Apparatus torlmpregnating Logs, of which the following is a specil'ication.

The main objects of this invention are to provide an improved form ofapparatus for injecting chemicals, coloring matter or other tluids intologs; to provide a device ot this class which is particularly adaptedfor treating the logs under high pressures without strainingthenraterial of the logs; and to provide an improved construction forpreventing spilling and waste ot the ehemicals 'during the process oittreating the logs.

Wood is an organic substance, and a log consists of fibers disposed in alongitudinal direction and arranged in annular layers representingsuccessive periods oi` growth ot the tree. The inner layers are calledheart wood, and are usually ot a darker color than the outer layers. Thespaces between the fibers ot' heart wood are filled with dried andhardened gum and resinous substances which clog up the sap channels.rl`he outer layers of fibers iorm what is called sap wood, whichcontains a larger amount ot' water than is contained in the heart wood.cells of the sap wood also contain a large amount of organic and sottgelatinous substances.

In the prior practice ot the art t-o which this invention relates, ithas been t'ound that the heart wood of the log requires much greaterpressure for its successful treatment.'

than is necessary lfor the treatment ot' the living or sap Wood of thelog. As far as I am aware, the injecting of chemicals or fluids intologs has always been accomplished by forcing the tluids into one end ot'the logkathigh pressure, while the outer surface of the log is exposedto the atmosphere. Under such conditions, it has been impossible to usepressures high enough to insure the uniform treatment of the heart Wood,for the reason that the sap wood is incapable of withstanding such highpressures. In the art of coloring logs, it lhas tor this reason beennecessary to waste that part ot' the Wood which is at the heart ot thelog. and to eut up into narrower strips the widest The and most Valuableboards which could be obtalned from the log.

ln the apparatus which is hereiinlfterdescribed, the log may besubjected to any de sired pressure` without .splitting open, tor thereason that the pressure both inside and outside of the log isequalized. lt is theretore a simple matter to treat. the log undersutiicient pressure to insure that the fluids, chemicals or coloringmatter penetrate all of the parts ot the log and produce uniform resultsthroughoutthe entire transverse area ot the log.

A specitic form of appaatu s for carrying out this invention isilhlstrated in the accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 is avertical section, partly dia-` grammatic. of an apparatus designedaccordiug` to4 this invent-ion for yinjecting coloring matter. chemicalsor other lluids into the sap channels oi a log. Fig. 2 is an end Viewshowing the manner of mounting the removable head on the casing orcylinder. Fig. 3 is a diagram re1'iresenting in outline the transversesection ot a tree, and the position of the heart wood therein.

ln the form shown. in the drawings, the apparatus comprises a cylinder'or casing l, preferably mounted with its axis horizontal upon suitablesupports, not shown, and provided With relatively movable heads 2 and53, adapted to support alog` t between them in the manner shown in F ig.l. l

The head 2 is hinged at to one end of the cylinder and is secured inliquid-tight engagement therewith by means of a plural ity or' bolts (5.Theseare preferably hinged at 7 to lugs on the cylinder, and extendlthrough radial slots in the head so that they may be thrown back ont ofthe way without entirely removing the nuts from the bolts. The head 3 isin the form of apiston slidably fitting within the cylinder and isprovided with suitable packing rings 8 to forni a {luid-tight fit withthe walls of the eylin der. The opposed faces of the heads 2 and 3 areprovided with axially alined conicalthe logs are, of course, trimmed soas to provide as large an exposed area as possible at the end ofthellog, and at the same time insure a continuous bearing on the headaround the entire periphery of the log. When the log is in position asshown in Fig. 1, there will be a space 10 and 11 respectively betweeneach head and the adjacent end ofthe log. A'fiexible pipe 12 connectsthe space 10 in the hea'd 2 with a 3-way valve fitting 13 which-hasbranches leading .respectively to a pressure pipe M and a suction pipe15. A similar flexible pipe'16 is con nected through a {Ji-way valvefitting 17 with the suction and pressure pipes 14 and 15. A pipe 18connects the pressure pipe 14 with the cylinder at a point between theheads 2 and 3. This pipe is controlled by a valve 19. The cylinder hasalso connected thereto a pair of valved pipes 2O and 21, for, thepurpose of washing the interior of the cylinder by causing water oranother liquid to circulate through it. The head 3 is movable in thecasing by means of a rod 22 which may be moved by any suitablemechanism, as for instance, a hydraulic jack, not shown in the drawing.

The operation of the device shown is as follows :-The head 2 is firstswung back out of the way on its hinge 5 so'as to. permit the log to-beinsertedinto the easing. The head 2 is then closed and securely boltedby means of the bolts 6 to prevent leakage. The head Y 3 is now forcedinward toward the head 2 so as to center the log and support it betweenthe two heads in the manner shown in Fig. 1, it being understood thatthe ends of the log have been previously trimmed to provide conicalsurfaces fitting the heads.

Assuming that the apparatus is to be used for injecting coloring matterinto the log, the first step is` to force through the sap channels ofthe log a suitable fluid chemical for removing the sap and resinousmatter from the pores of the wood. This is done by manipulating thevalves 13 and 17 so as to cause the fluid to fiow from the pressure pipe14 into the space 10 within the head 2, while the air or fiuid in thespace 11 is exhausted by the suction pipe 15. In order to prevent thepressure of the liquid within the log .from bursting the log, the valve19 is opened to admit the fluid under pressure into the space 'aroundthe log. As the pressure in the space 11 is lower than that in the space10, the fluid will be forced along the sap channels toward the space 11and will dissolve the dried'sap and resinous matter and carry them withit. Afterthis operation has continued for asuitable length of time, thevalve 13 is set so as to open communication between Ithe pipe 12 and thesuction pipe 15,

and the valve 17 is set to connect the pipe 16 with the pressure pipe 14and eut off its connection with the suction pipe.' This causes a flow ofchemical through the log in the opposite direction. After the log hasbeen treated by the sap removing chemical, the chemical contained in thevarious spaces in the cylinder and in the system of piping is drainedoff. The coloring matter is now forced in liquid form into the pressurepipe 14, and as the valve 19 is open, it fiows into the space around thelog', as well as into one of the headsl The coloring' matter is forcedinto the log first in one direction and then in the other in the samemanner as has been hereinbefore described in'conncction with thechemicals. After the completion of the operation of coloring the log,the head 3 is drawn back so that the log' is no longer held inliquid-tight contact with the two heads, and all' of the liquid isfinally7 drained off. There is no waste of the liquid, as any of itwhich is confined in the spaces 10 and 11 would run down into thecylinder and be drained off. The log may then be washed b water passedinto the cylinder through the pipe 20 and drawn off through the pipe 21.

To remove the log, the bolts 6 are loosened, and the head2 is swung backon its hinge so as to permit the log to be withdrawn from the open endof the cylinder.`

Although but one specific embodiment of this invention is herein shownand described, it will be understood that numer-A ous details of theconstruction shown may be altered or omitted, within the scope of thefollowing claims, without departing from the spirit of this invention.For example, it is obvious that the liquid in the space around the logneed not necessarily be the same as that whichffis injected into the logand undcrccrtain conditions it may be preferable to have a lowerpressure in the space around the log than that at the injecting head` Iclaim 1. A device for injecting fiuids into logs comprising a cylinderhaving a head at one end, a second head slidably mounted in saidcylinder and having a fluid-tight joint therewith, means for forcingsaidmovable head toward said first head for supporting a log between them,one of said heads having`therein a conical socket formed to havefluid-tight engagement around the edges of the adjacent end of the logwhen trimmed to conical form, and means for forcing a fluid into one ofsaid heads through the log and withdrawing' it at the other head.

2. A device of the class described, comprising' a cylinder, a headremovably mounted at one end of said cylinder, a movable head in theform of a piston fitting within and slidable along said cylinder, pipesconnected with said heads and adapted to permit a fiuid to be fo'rccdinto one of said heads and be withdrawn from the other, and means forequalizing' the fluid pressure in said cylinder and one of said heads,said heads having therein opposed conical sockets adapted to haveWedging tit around the outer edges of the ends of a. log when trimmed toconical form. i

3. A device of the class described, coniprising a cylinder, a pair ofheads mounted at opposite ends of said cylinder and adapted to engageopposite ends 0I" a log, one of said heads being movable toward and.away from the other', each'of said heads having therein a socket adaptedto fit fluid-tight around the periphery of the log and provide a fluidchamber Within said head at the end oi? the log, a iuid pressure pipe, asuction pipe7 individual pipes connected with the sockets in said headsand each having connection with said iuid pressure pipe and said suctionpipe, valves controlling said pipe connections and adapted to Causefluid to flow in either direction through the log wit-hout disturbingthe other parts of the device, and a pipe connecting said pressure pipewith said cylinder between said. heads.

4. A device for injecting fluids into logs,

comprising a cylinder having a head at one end, a second head slidablymounted in said cylinder and having a Huid-tight joint thereto conicalforni, and means for forcing a fluid into one of said heads through thelog and withdrawing it at the other head, the concave surfaces of saidsockets being extended so as to substantially meet thel walls of thecylinder whereby a login said cy'linder will he lifted and centered iiisaid sockets so as to be properly supported be tween the heads throughthe act of moving said movable head toward the other. 4

Signed at Chicago this 7th day of October 1909.

WILLIAM Gr. BORN. Witnesses:

WALTER HAGEN, SAMUEL P. KNISELY,

